The Green Areas Are Getting Larger

Today, I once again spent most of the ride crossing the desert, but the green patches are becoming larger and larger. I set off at 8:30 a.m., quickly left the town behind, and returned to the Gobi Desert. With a dry temperature of 28°C, the ride was quite pleasant as far as the weather was concerned.

The ride itself was not particularly pleasant, however, because the light tailwind that had been forecast turned into a moderately strong headwind. Together with the gently rising terrain, it meant that after two hours I had covered only a little over 30 kilometers. Extrapolated over the planned distance, this would have made today the longest day in the saddle of my entire journey. A strong tailwind had been forecast for the afternoon, and I found myself wondering why I had set off so early. But once again, that was just my mind refusing to stop thinking. Just relax, keep pedaling, and everything will work out.

And indeed, everything worked out. By the second quarter of the route, riding had already become noticeably easier. I made sure to drink enough water and take regular breaks to eat, and as the day went on, the kilometers seemed to pass more and more easily.

After about 90 kilometers, I found myself surrounded once again by farmland. I rode through small villages and passed numerous fields full of blooming flowers.

When I arrived at my booked hotel at 4:30 p.m., I was first greeted by a wonderful surprise: for my birthday, Jiabin had arranged drinks, appetizers, and dessert for me. The unpleasant surprise followed immediately afterward. The receptionist told me that she could not accommodate me. I insisted that, since July 2024, all hotels in China have been required to accept foreign guests. Somewhat reluctantly, she followed my suggestion and tried through various channels to contact the local police, but no one answered the phone. After more than an hour of discussions and phone calls, I finally had to give up and look for another hotel. At least while waiting, I was already able to enjoy the delicious drink while sitting on the lobby sofa. So I hung the rest of the birthday gifts on my handlebars and set off again.

At the second hotel, there were no serious problems. The receptionist was, however, rather busy playing a game on her mobile phone, so it took her three attempts at the sequence of “put the phone down as briefly as possible and copy the passport” before she finally produced a copy that met her expectations. After that, everything went smoothly.

After settling into my hotel room, I finally enjoyed the delicious birthday appetizers. Following a quick shower, I headed to the restaurant Jiabin had chosen for me to eat noodles. In China, it is traditional to eat long noodles on your birthday to wish for a long life—rice is definitely too short for that. Thank you so much for these wonderful birthday surprises. Even though I spent most of the day alone, I truly felt cared for and loved. It was a wonderful feeling.

Besides my birthday, there was another reason to celebrate today: I passed the milestone of 10,000 kilometers on my journey. There was not much celebrating, though, because I was simply too tired. Going to bed early was the better choice—and a gift to myself as well.